Math skills have declined sharply across the country in the last decade. In The State of the American Student 2025, the Center on Reinventing Public Education (CRPE) spotlights concerning trends in Math Education:
- Nearly 4 in 10 eighth graders score below Basic on the Nation’s Report Card.
- Grade inflation means that students receiving the same grade have less skills
- 23% less qualified math teachers are available
The CPRE report advises taking best practices from the Science of Math: “Rigorous studies show that schools should emphasize math facts, procedural knowledge, and deeper conceptual thinking, but teachers are unclear about the right balance.”
Alliance takes seriously the responsibility to ensure all of our scholars are supported in their math development. Alliance uses a research-informed approach to math instruction in line with the CRPE recommendations:
- Teachers – Ensuring teachers are qualified in their subject area
- Instruction – Matching curriculum and instructional models to current best practices
- Tracking – Observing metrics with our SBAC scores, or Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium, testing Common Core State Standards.
Alliance’s approach has led to improving Math skills, proven by SBAC scores growing year-over-year. They also compare favorably to neighborhood and state scores: students are scoring 10% higher than the state average at schools like Alliance Marc and Eva Stern Math and Science School, and 14% higher at Alliance Dr. Olga Mohan High School.
Applying these best practices has a direct impact on scholars’ college-ready math preparation.